


Family Ties

by ClarkStark



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen, Harry Potter Next Generation
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-03-23
Updated: 2017-06-23
Packaged: 2018-03-19 05:32:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 874
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3598230
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ClarkStark/pseuds/ClarkStark
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After nineteen years of silence between them, Draco Malfoy writes a letter to Harry Potter after Scorpius questions his place in the Malfoy family.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Draco Malfoy writes a letter to Harry Potter, asking for help.

_Harry_ , he wrote, and then stopped. That seemed too informal, given all that had transpired between them. Yet _Mr. Potter_ seemed too formal, and _Potter_ by itself seemed brusque, and too reminiscent of their school years to be comfortable.

Perhaps he was overthinking the matter, but then, perhaps he was not. The wording of this letter was all-important, for one wrong phrase could ruin everything before healing could even begin. Draco was hesitant to examine those old wounds again, but his son needed wisdom that Draco could not give, and if Scorpius’ peace of mind required some degree of unpleasantness on his father’s part, so be it.

 _Harry_ would do, he decided, and he picked up his quill again.

_I hope this letter finds you and your family well. No doubt you find it much quieter now that the school year has begun. I am told that your Albus was sorted into Slytherin House. I hope he finds it enjoyable, and more open-minded than the Slytherin House you and I left behind._

_It is on the subject of Houses that I wish to speak with you, if you would grant me but one more moment of your time, assuming, of course, you haven’t put this letter down._

Draco furrowed his brow. That did not seem confident at all. How very unlike the arrogant youth that he had been twenty years ago. It might have been amusing, but Draco still had some pride left when it came to his boyhood rival. Even so, he decided, it had to be put aside, if only for now.

 _I realize_ , he wrote, _that I am the last person you would expect, or desire, to receive a letter from, even after all this time. I also realize that I have no business asking you for any favors after all the grief I put you through, so it is with no small amount of shame that I must request one nonetheless._

_We find our sons interestingly reversed, you might say – in different Houses than we were at that age. Your Albus, as I noted above, was recently sorted into Slytherin. My Scorpius was sorted into Gryffindor. I am very proud of him, Harry, but I’m afraid he finds it disturbing. He is the first Malfoy that I know of – and my parents informed me of many – to be sorted into that House. In his most recent letter home, he questioned his place in the Malfoy family, most, if not all, of whom were Slytherins._

_Of our cousins the Blacks, however, there is one I know who shared my son’s position._

_It is for this reason that I write to you, Harry. My family was not fond of Sirius Black, but I know he was your godfather, and I know you became close following his escape from Azkaban – my father never got over that punch. He deserved it, in hindsight._

_As I said before, you do not owe me any favors, but I implore you nonetheless to see that the sins of the father are not visited upon his child. If you find it in your heart to write my Scorpius, please tell him about Sirius. Tell him what a Gryffindor from a Slytherin family meant to the world. Obviously you knew him better than I, and it would mean a great deal more to my son coming from someone in that position._

_All the Best_ , he wrote, and he meant it.

 _Draco Malfoy_.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry Potter responds to Draco Malfoy's letter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realize it's been about two years, but here's a small continuation. Enjoy. :)

_Draco_ , he wrote, and then stopped. If he had ever addressed Malfoy by anything other than his surname, he did not remember it. It felt odd, but not unwelcome. It created a sense of familiarity that they had only too briefly explored before their worlds changed again.

Harry leaned back in his seat, a fine leather chair with which Shacklebolt had gifted him on his thirtieth birthday. Ginny often joked that perhaps some of the Minister’s care and wisdom would rub off on him, and right now, Harry hoped she was correct.

It was not that Harry was unwilling to help. He had given his life many years ago because he thought it would help, and he would do it again. In this case, however, he wondered if Malfoy’s request would do more harm than good. Yes, Sirius Black had been a Gryffindor from a Slytherin family, and yes, he had been a hero until and beyond the end, but as the years passed and families began, Harry found himself agreeing with Molly Weasley. Sirius had been a good man, but a poor role model.

Truth be told, Harry learned more from Arthur and Molly Weasley than even Remus Lupin could teach him, and that was precisely because they had been parents, not simply mentors and professors. Scorpius Malfoy did not need someone to teach him to banish dementors. He did not need a stranger’s reassurance. He needed his family, and as willing as Harry was to aid the boy in any capacity he could, the fact remained that he was not that.

These thoughts needed to be conveyed in person, he decided, and so, taking up his quill again, he very simply wrote,

_Three Broomsticks, when you’ve got an evening free. Let’s talk._

_Until then,_

_Harry._


End file.
